Uttarakhand: A hotspot of biodiversity

Abstract

There are 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world, which include Indian Himalayan Region (Samant et al., 1998). Uttarakhand, a state crossed by the Himalayas is enriched with diverse flora and fauna. Ever since times of Ramayana, it is considered as a great reservoir of rare and endangered species that have the power to heal various diseases. There are 30 rivers that have either originated or cross Uttarakhand. The local flora include plants like Urtica parviflora, Premna barbata, Oroxylum indicum, Meizotropis pellita and Prunella vulgaris, etc. These plants have potential to treat a broad spectrum of diseases ranging from a common disease like headache to deadly disease like cancer, but unfortunately, there are many more to be explored for their use in the betterment of medicine and healthcare. Here, in this editorial, some plants on which the work has been done in my lab are discussed. The short description of these plants is given below.